Local Goa News

Friday, May 6, 2016

‘Bouncers’ secure showroom where girl worked

PANJIM: The lifestyle store where the minor girl was employed, only to be sacked few days later for alleged misappropriation of funds, is now a fortified place.
A day after Goa Police booked its proprietor – St Cruz MLA Atanasio (Babush) Monserrate on charges of rape, the store had ‘bouncers’ standing around shielding it from media intrusion.
When the Herald team visited the place, two well-built persons – in appearance bouncers – were conspicuous behind the glass door while the staff stood around doing nothing.
The gift shop, mostly frequented by students, did not have any customers the entire time the Herald team was in. Herald
managed to strike a conversation with one of the employees, who appeared frustrated over the developments. The others too refused to show interest in either speaking about their ex-colleague or the case.
Monserrate, before surrendering to the Crime Branch (CB) on Thursday afternoon, had told Herald that the girl was sacked from the job on being caught misappropriating the showroom’s funds.
Speaking to a section of the media while entering the CB office at Ribandar on Thursday, he however conceded that the girl’s parents are his constituency voters and he had recruited her so that she could stop ‘loitering around’.